Subway sides with Softcard (ISIS)

Pretty big news in the world of mobile payments as the on life support company known as Softcard, previously branded as ISIS until that organization in the Middle East began making so much noise, has landed Subway for mobile payments.

http://www.mobilepaymentstoday.com/news/subway-goes-with-softcard-for-mobile-payments-platform/

A very good analysis over on Mobile Commerce that matches my own thinking:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/apple-pays-halo-effect-evident-in-subway-softcard-partnership

Here is a snippet from that piece:

The excitement around Apple Pay is helping to shine a new light on NFC-enabled mobile payments solution Softcard – previously known as Isis – which had been languishing, as evidenced by a new deal to support mobile payments and loyalty at Subway.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

MCX Announces CurrentC Brand for Mobile Payments

We have some pretty enormous events stirring up this September in the payments space.

The Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX), the consortium of retailers embarking on a journey in mobile payments together, yesterday announced its consumer-facing brand.

CurrentC

The logo above is the app icon.

We have a number of stories on payments that cover this and other news in payments so read on.

First up is one of my favorite sites for news in the mobile space, Mobile Commerce Daily:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/mcx-launches-currentc-in-pilot-programs-targets-2015-nationwide-rollout

Here is a snippet from that piece:

While Apple’s rumored launch of mobile payments solution next week is expected to make a big impact, Merchant Customer Exchange – a consortium of retailers – has beat the technology company to the punch with a pilot already in market and significant potential for a quick impact on sales.

Next is PYMTS.com with a very good analysis:

http://www.pymnts.com/in-depth/2014/the-411-on-mcx-and-mobile-payments/#.VAjOhcVdXVU

Here is a snippet from that piece:

[Dekkers Davidson, CEO of MCX, stated] ... “The CurrentC Network will provide merchants with unparalleled reach and resources in the mobile payments category and will offer merchants new and exciting channels to engage with customers, strengthen relationships, and enjoy more control of transaction data.”

A couple more to read:

http://gigaom.com/2014/09/03/mcx-launches-currentc-a-mobile-wallet-for-walmart-best-buy-and-other-retailers/

http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/Eye-on-Branding_-As-Wallets-Struggle_-MCX-Dubs-Its-Scheme-CurrentC-While-Isis-Says-It-Is-Now-Softcard

Next is news from McDonald's and their NFC-based mobile payments efforts:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/mcdonalds-preparing-for-launch-of-mobile-payment-system-memo-shows

Finally is news from the troubled mobile carrier brand ISIS:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/isis-softcard-rebranding-leaves-strategic-woes-unaddressed

Hope you have a fine day.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

PS  For purposes of disclosure I am involved in MCX through my employer Topco Associates, LLC.

MCX and ISIS in the News

A couple of contrasting stories were published recently regarding mobile payments providers MCX and ISIS.

First up is the pending re-branding of ISIS now that a terrorist group in Iraq has been dubbed the same name by western journalists.  Ouch.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/nfc-payment-service-isis-rebranded-distance-middle-eastern-militant-group/#!baN9rx

Next is a short piece on MCX.

http://paymentsviews.com/2014/07/07/mcx-now-i-get-it/

Here is a snippet from that piece:

...it dawned on me yesterday, MCX makes perfect sense if you think of it as enabling merchants to better exchange customer spending habits with manufacturers, consumer packaged good manufacturers (CPGs) and others to create more timely, relevant and compelling offers to those merchants’ customers!

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0128 Misc

Travel to and from San Francisco last week limited my availability to provide comment.  I'm going to catch up with the 4 stories that most captured my interest.

First is the brand crisis ISIS is facing thanks to the group in Iraq with the same name.  Does this spell trouble or what?

http://www.paymentssource.com/news/isis-faces-a-branding-crisis-3018333-1.html

Next is the rumor that Microsoft will use the Lumia name instead of Surface, something this writer mentioned at the time of the release of the Surface Pro 3.

http://www.zdnet.com/microsoft-rumored-to-be-planning-to-replace-surface-branding-with-lumia-7000031028/

A good little article that talks about disruption in retail and some simple thoughts on how to approach the phenomenon.

http://chainstoreage.com/article/three-ways-retailers-can-capitalize-digital-disruptions

Finally, a short piece on the accelerating pace of mobile payments.

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/mobile-pay-seen-trailing-cards-despite-dominance-over-desktop

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

NFC Takes Another Blow

That is the exact headline of one story today that is worth taking a look at.

"NFC Takes Another Blow"

Here is the story:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/nfc-takes-another-blow-as-7-eleven-best-buy-shut-it-down

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Best Buy and 7-Eleven have announced that they will be shutting down their near-field communications capabilities in their retail locations, pointing to further struggles for NFC-based mobile payments.

Here is another story that shows ISIS apparently imploding as the CTO goes public with a lot of static on the question of adoption:

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9247016/Isis_CTO_accuses_retailers_of_turning_off_NFC_and_smartcard_payment_tech

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Efforts to push mobile payments using NFC-ready smartphones have gone through a series of fits and starts in the past three years in the U.S., but have had little effect on how Americans make purchases.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0089 Mobile Wallets

Mobile Commerce Daily has written up a report made available by Yankee Group.

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/paypal-leads-the-way-for-mobile-wallets-but-adoption-flounders-yankee-group

I've not been able to get my hands on a copy of the full report.  Here is a snippet from that piece on MCD:

According to the “U.S. Mobile Wallet Roundup: Gauging the Future Potential of Today’s Solutions” report, two-thirds of consumers are interested in mobile wallets, but this has yet to translate to mass adoption. The report also points to PayPal as the leader in the space, with 15 percent of consumers having used its application in the past month to make an in-store purchase.

...

Yankee Group tracked seven current-generation third-party wallet initiatives with physical-world payment capabilities by conducting consumer surveys and speaking with wallet providers, retailers, card networks, payment processors, issuers, mobile network operators and point-of-sale vendors. The report assigns each mobile wallet solution with a high, medium or low potential.

The mobile wallets with high potential are PayPal and MCX. The ones with medium potential are LevelUp and Google Wallet, and the ones with low potential are Square, Isis and Loop.

Here is a snapshot of the first exhibit in the Yankee Group report:



Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**
Good article on Yahoo News.  Much better than the one listed above.
http://news.yahoo.com/mobile-payments-once-again-on-the-cusp-of-taking-off-154820454.html

This quote stands out to me:
MCX’s key advantage is the fact that it signed on with grocery chains and gas stations – two high-use areas. “That’s a great way to encourage use and change an entrenched behavior,” says McKee. “It’s going to be very disruptive.”

NFC and ISIS News Impacts Mobile Payments

Yesterday's news informed us of moves by MasterCards and Visa to circumvent the need for mobile carrier security in mobile payments.

http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/4530

This is a major blow, and some would argue the final nail in the coffin, for ISIS.  The carrier solution to mobile payments now has no reason for being, essentially.

This take on the subject questions the viability of ISIS following the move by the major credit companies:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/mobile-payments-smackdown-did-google-wallet-just-outplay-isis

Here is a snippet from that piece:

The Host Card Emulation feature in Android KitKat for driving near-field communications mobile payments just got a big boost in the form of support from MasterCard and Visa, which could spell trouble for Isis.

One last article speaks of the new forms of payment now opening up because of this move:

http://www.realcleartechnology.com/articles/2014/02/20/coming_soon_a_new_way_to_pay_with_your_phone_989.html

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0072 Mobile Payments

Barcodes are dominating mobile payments at the moment with new player Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) making a stir and Near Field Communications (NFC) in trouble.

An article by Mobile Commerce Daily covers this ground well:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/barcode-apps-drive-mobile-payments-growth-report

Here is a snippet from that writing:

As mobile wallets’ use becomes more feasible, bar code-based payment applications are taking the lead followed by tab-based payment apps, while NFC-based payment apps barely keep pace, according to a new report from Parks Associates.
Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

News From 2013 and What Will Make News in 2014

If you are in the Boston, MA area as I am you are starting off the New Year with a pretty decent winter storm.  About a foot of snow expected and it is gusting up pretty well right now.

Happy Holidays, Happy Winter Solstice, and Happy New Year to everyone.

First I want to cover a few articles that recap 2013.  There are always quite a few as the year ends and I've found a few that are worth sharing.  Then I'll take a moment to put down a few of my thoughts for what to expect in 2014.

2013

Payments.com has been a go-to site for me and Karen Webster's writings are the best.  This recap of 2013 is a good one for payments:

http://www.pymnts.com/briefing-room/consumer-engagement/Loyalty/2013/looking-ahead-at-the-close-of-2013/

Here are a couple of lines from that one I want to share to help us look forward to 2014:

The payments and commerce space over the next year will be the most interesting we've seen in at least the last five and unleash even more innovation. 

This one from TechCrunch says goodbye to 2013 and welcomes the rest of the world to the mobile internet:

http://techcrunch.com/2014/01/02/the-late-adopters/

User Experience is important to product management in the technology space.  This article from a blog is a good one:

milestones-and-missteps-in-ux-design-for-2013-winners-and-losers-not-the-usual-suspects/

Last one from 2013 deals with the advent of the "mobile internet" during the holiday shopping season.  The title of the article says quite a lot:

http://www.csmonitor.com/Innovation/2013/1227/Santa-leaves-smart-phone-steps-in-Mobile-sales-soar-on-Christmas-Day

Here is a bit from that article:

Overall, online shopping continues to make a bigger dent in holiday shopping than previous years. IBM reports that online sales on Christmas Day were up 16.5 percent from last year, and mobile sales made up for 29 percent of all online sales, which is up 40 percent from 2012.

We will use that to segue to 2014...

2014

...speaking of mobile.  IBM is now declaring we must differentiate our data between smart phones and tablets.

http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240211774/Retailers-must-distinguish-between-smartphones-and-tablets-says-IBM

This is, of course, old news in this blog.  I wrote a white paper about this subject early in 2013.

Now how about a few thoughts on what 2014 might bring?

• Apple will attempt to make a splash in some arena, wearable devices maybe, maybe TV, maybe payments.  Meanwhile incremental changes will continue in their mature offerings but a move towards the now proven 2 in 1 laptop/tablet style by Microsoft will likely be forthcoming as well.
• This will be the year of the beacon.  Bluetooth 4.1 and Bluetooth Low Energy solutions will finally enable many of the brightest ideas around mobile internet interactions with people.
• Mobile wallets will have a breakout year.  The security breach at Target just might give EMV a push over the finish line and that could save ISIS.  Meanwhile MCX is on its way and PayPal isn't sitting around.
• Facebook will see big declines.  The "services" provided by Facebook have been chipped away at by a variety of other solutions such as Vine and Snapchat.  Overall the next generation of users has no interest in Facebook and this will begin to show itself this year.  Maybe the company will be mostly flat, maybe they'll find incremental ways to monetize their current offering, but the decline will be noticeable this year.
• Samsung will come out with yet another not-yet-ready product and declare itself the first to the top of the mountain once more ... and nobody will care.
• The biggest news I can't yet predict will likely involve a cloud-based solution for something.  I don't know what, but something.  The "internet of things" will take off in some way.  Will it be related to a cloud-based solution?  I don't know. 

Hope your new year brings you much happiness.

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

Google Wallet Not Just NFC

News from yesterday that is of considerable impact to both ISIS and NFC in general is Google Wallet will no longer be exclusive to Android devices carrying the NFC chip.

http://googlecommerce.blogspot.com/2

Here is a bit from Google:

Today, we’re introducing a new version of the Google Wallet app, which is rolling out this week to all Android phones (version 2.3 and higher), available this week in the U.S. The updated app helps you easily send money on the go, store all your loyalty cards, save money through offers, and view all your Google Wallet activity - all in one place.

ISIS can perform their national rollout but with no support from Apple, no longer exclusive support from Google & Android, the only thing they have left is the EMV chip requirements.  Something no merchant wants or needs.

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**

Capital One, one of the three founders of ISIS, has pulled its support.

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/apple-paypal-mobile-payments-gains-weaken-isis%E2%80%99-future

The end of ISIS is now clear in my opinion.  The effort this summer to create momentum was really an effort to stave off the end.

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0035 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)

The latest iteration of Bluetooth technology goes by a few names:

• Bluetooth 4.0
• Bluetooth Smart
• Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)

Now two companies are referring to it as "Beacon" technology.  Actually Apple is calling it iBeacon but that is pretty much the same thing.  PayPal is working on Beacon technology as well.  What is Bluetooth and what is BLE?

Bluetooth is a wireless technology for exchanging information over short distances.  This is similar to Near_Field_Communication but is now available in most phones on the planet in one form or another.

A key strength of Bluetooth relative to NFC is the range of functionality.  This has also been an area of weakness as Bluetooth commonly drew heavily on battery power and raised security concerns.  With Bluetooth Low Energy, a subset of Bluetooth 4.0, these concerns seem to have been addressed.

PayPal - Beacon

The eBay owned payments company has publicly announced plans for an in-store payment mechanism using BLE.  Here is an excellent article on the subject, though the title quite overstates the case:

http://www.internetretailer.com/2013/09/12/paypal-and-apple-drop-mobile-payments-bombshells

Here is a snippet from that article:

“PayPal Beacon opens the door to a fundamentally different way to use technology to make shopping more valuable and more personal for consumers and retailers,” says David Marcus, president of PayPal, which is owned by eBay Inc. “We challenged ourselves to find a better experience than swiping a credit card. We figured the only better way to pay would be to do nothing. Just walk in a store, and, like magic, when you’re ready to pay, money is transferred securely. No wallet. No card. Nothing to do. Not even touching your phone.”

Apple - iBeacon

Apple's announcement of iOS 7 very quietly pointed to iBeacon.  The September 10 keynote made no mention of the technology.  However, it may become something as big or bigger than the features and functionality highlighted in those announcements.  This article speaks well to Apple and how this decision completes the company's dumping on NFC:

http://gigaom.com/2013/09/10/with-ibeacon-apple-is-going-to-dump-on-nfc-and-embrace-the-internet-of-things/

Here is a snippet from that article:

Using Bluetooth Low Energy(BLE), iBeacon opens up a new whole dimension by creating a beacon around regions so your app can be alerted when users enter them. Beacons are a small wireless sensors placed inside any physical space that transmit data to your iPhone using Bluetooth Low Energy (also known as Bluetooth 4.0 and Bluetooth Smart).

For example, imagine you walk into a mall with an iPhone 5s (comes with iOS 7 and iBeacon). You are approaching a Macy’s store, which means your iPhone is entering into Macy’s iBeacon region. Essentially iBeacon can transmit customized coupons or even walking directions to the aisle where a particular item is located. It can prompt a customer with special promotions or a personalized messages and recommendations based on their current location or past history with the company. 

NFC and iBeacon

One more article speaks to this subject and is also worth reading:

http://www.retail-week.com/

Here is a snippet from that article:

NFC may yet take off with or without Apple - most other mobile devices on the market contain the technology. But having Apple on board would certainly make things easier for NFC’s proponents.

Jan Dawson, chief telecoms analyst at Ovum says: “Apple still doesn’t have NFC in its phones, which is how other device vendors have supported payments, and it looks like it won’t anytime soon.”

Excellent reading overall.  I hope you will take the time to scan through all 3 articles.

Final Thoughts

The mobile internet is in its infancy.  The changes we are seeing are going to continue and are going to impact the way we do things every day, often every moment of every day.  Mobile payments is coming, the so-called "internet of things" is also coming (more on that later).  This past week we learned a bit about what the next few years will look like (iBeacon, M7 chip, Touch ID), and what it won't look like (NFC).

Have a great weekend.

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**

This article is a good addition to the above reading list on the topic.

Why Apples Indoor GPS Plan is Brilliant

Happy reading.

**UPDATE #2**

Third party vendors are working on solutions to provide "beacons":
http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/1518059

**UPDATE #3**

EConsultancy has some information on how marketers can use iBeacon technology:
http://econsultancy.com/us/blog/63633-a-marketer-s-guide-to-ibeacons-and-bluetooth-low-energy

**UPDATE #4**

Aisle411 is using beacon technology for in-store mapping:
aisle411-partners-estimote-indoor-retail-mapping

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0034 NFC, ISIS, and the iPhone

Mobile Payments.  Will it require hardware on the phone?  On the POS?  Both?  Or something else?

MCX is betting hardware that is already in place can be used for mobile payments.

ISIS is betting on the benefits of Near Field Communications (NFC) as a hardware solution.

Apple is siding with the MCX path.  For two years running the Apple Keynote announcing the new iPhone has given many supporters of NFC a headache.  No announcement of NFC support in iPhones this year, the year before, or the year before that.  NFC is limited to the very small group of new Android phones.  Is that ubiquitous enough to take off?  ISIS would like you to think so as I have written about in here before (search the tags for ISIS and click on that tag).

This article speaks to yesterday's non-announcement:

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/

Here is a snippet from the article:

Apple has once again dismissed the mobile wallet and data-sharing capabilities of near field communication (NFC) technology. Meanwhile, NFC is being used in dozens of new Android phones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S4, and in phones running the BlackBerry and Windows Phone operating systems.

Apple's decision is clearly the result of a long-term competitive strategy based on a projection of how the mobile payments business will evolve. The move serves to benefit Apple most of all, analysts said.

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**

Bit more worth reading.  The national rollout of ISIS is relying on a NFC jacket for iPhones.  Yeah right.  As this article says:

“A case needs to be sold and distributed to consumers, then it needs to be installed on the phone and then consumers need to start using it,” said Rick Oglesby.

Never going to happen in large numbers.  Here is the entire article:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/isis-jerry-rigs-iphone-mobile-payments-in-bid-for-users

Happy reading.

Apple Event Part II - iPhone 5S and 5C

The Apple Keynote is in the books and here are the major findings around the iPhone. As expected we have a new iPhone and a 2nd new iPhone.  No surprises today.  The famed Apple secrecy has become a leaking ship.  Everyone around the world knows everything well before the event and the purpose is now merely confirmation.

For this year's event I followed the CNet live blog.
http://news.cnet.com/

On with the findings:

1.) International Efforts
2.) Mobile Gaming
3.) Mobile Motion Sensing
4.) Fingerprint Identification

Apple is really emphasizing the international footprint of the iPhone especially China.

First the major update to the iPhone:

iPhone 5S

16GB at $199. 32GB at $299 and 64GB at $399. Yes, on-contract.  Available Sept 20.Now comes in three colors: "Space Gray" replaces Black, White and Champagne/Gold (in the middle).

Some features: 

Open GL for game processing.  Really impressive graphics capability.  Likely as good as the XBox 360 or PS3.

Big internal re-work.  The M7 chip next to the A7 64 bit processor.  The big news appears to be the A7 and 64 bit processing, the first ever for mobile.  However the M7 may be the bigger story.  This has significant motion sensing capability.  Your iPhone will know if you are walking, sitting, riding a bike, or in a car.  Fitness apps will have a great new toy to play with.  Is Apple providing this in the iPhone to help them figure out what an iWatch should do for customers?  Combine that with the fingerprint ID (next topic) for mobile payments and you have an interesting mobile/wearable device capability being built out.

Touch ID fingerprint reader.  Built in to the home button with no apparent change to the button.  All behind the scenes.  Just tap the home button to unlock your phone and the fingerprint sensor does it all.  No more swiping to unlock your iPhone.  Can also use Touch ID for iTunes purchases (think mobile payments processing is on the way?).

Next is an improved camera.  This keynote heavily emphasized the camera, a major request from customers and an opportunity for competitors such as Nokia. This has steadily improved with each iteration of the iPhone.

iOS 7 is also big news though this was announced quite some time ago.

Big news is once again not a surprise: no NFC or Near Field Communications.  Mobile payments continues to be something Apple doesn't want to make in to a hardware offering.  The ISIS type offerings of the world can beat the drum as much as they want but if Apple doesn't come onboard with the iPhone it isn't going to succeed in the United States.

Now on to the low-end phone.  The first ever offering of a less expensive iPhone.

iPhone 5C

Multi-colored phones with a plastic case instead of the more expensive metal offering.  Also has colorful slip cases as an option to combine in creative ways.  Definitely a low-end offering and definitely created to help Apple overseas and to improve the company's profit margins.  This is essentially the iPhone 5 with a plastic case available in multiple colors.

$99 for 16GB and $199 for 32GB with contract available for pre-order on Sept 13 and available the 20th

iPhone 4S

Final offering available.  Only the 8GB but for free with contract.  The lowest of the low-end from Apple and certain to be phased out with the iPhone 6 next year.

That about wraps it up.  Certainly is an evolutionary announcement.  I continue to feel Apple may be at the peak of the Innovator's Dilemma, solely focused on harvesting from their established market share rather than taking chances to innovate.  This provides an opening for other companies to leapfrog Apple.  Samsung wants to be that company.  Can they?

Have a great day,

J.W. Gant

Note: Corrected the statement that a black iPhone 5S would be offered.  It is "Space Gray", a new color, alongside the new Champagne Gold.

**UPDATE**

One good article on Bloomberg analyzes the new features on the 5S.  Good read.

apple-seen-seeding-future-wearable-products-in-iphone

Enjoy.

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0031 ISIS vs. Merchants

Mobile Payments.

ISIS and NFC is in the news again with the American Express and Chase deal.  I've written about this one before and see a looming war between ISIS and MCX.  Which will win the hearts and minds of consumers?
The expected September 10 announcement by Apple of the new iPhone will be news for one thing: NFC.  Will it be included in the new iPhone or not?  If it is the momentum gathering for ISIS will continue.  If not, one battle in the war will be over in favor of MCX

Here is another analysis on the subject well worth your reading:

http://www.mobilepaymentstoday.com/article/218301/Will-Isis-NFC-bet-force-merchants-hands-Analysis

Here is a snippet from near the end of the article:

Walmart has partnered with other big box retailers such as Target and Best Buy to offer its own mobile commerce service, MCX, which is unlikely to use NFC because of resistance by U.S. merchants to invest in POS upgrades that include NFC. Merchants already know they will have to upgrade their POS systems by 2015 to accommodate EMV standards. EMV standards are new authentication specifications announced by Visa, MasterCard and American Express to further reduce fraud. The prospect of merchants having to upgrade their POS systems twice in a short time period represents a barrier to NFC adoption.

With recent studies suggesting that more than 50 percent of smartphones in the U.S. may be NFC-enabled by the end of 2014, it seems that Isis is betting on issuers and cardholders driving NFC adoption at the point of interaction with the merchants. It remains to be seen if the merchants will eventually give in.

Here is my previous blog entry:

ISIS to Launch Nationwide

Happy reading,

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**  More good reading from the Gemalto perspective here:

http://www.pymnts.com/briefing-room/mobile/mobile-payments/2013/behind-the-value-propositions-nfc-vs-cloud-proximity-payments/

Have a great Labor Day weekend 2013!

ISIS Mobile Payments to Launch Nationwide?

ISIS is a mobile payments venture, a joint venture of multiple carriers in the United States including AT&T and Verizon Wireless among others.  This effort has been in the news the last year or two and all of it has been bad for quite a while now.  Their latest efforts signal a desire to change that and may signal something else as well.

ISIS has based their mobile payments solution on Near Field Communication (NFC) capabilities that require a hardware addition to devices.  Google was an Innovator in this space including NFC support in to Google Wallet that has deflated recently.  In Android devices the OEMs have tended to include the chip.  Apple however has not supported NFC with its products.  Not yet that is.

If you hold an iPhone 4S and last year's iPhone 5 at the same time you quickly see a huge difference in form factor and weight.  The screen on the iPhone 5 is longer, creating more space behind the screen for "stuff" but it is slimmer and weights noticeably less than the previous year's model, the 4S.  My thinking is all of this effort from the 4S to the 5 was to free up space and weight so Apple could add in hardware in this year's model, likely to be named the iPhone 5S.  Would NFC be one of those additions?

The rumor mill says yes.

http://www.ibtimes.com/apple-iphone-5s-rumors-nfc-features-likely-more-iwallet-patents-release-public-1177801

So if ISIS is thinking along the same lines, and may have received signals from Apple, this press release makes sense as a move to begin building momentum for NFC overall and ISIS in the meantime.

http://www.paymentssource.com/news/isis-prepares-for-nationwide-rollout-of-its-mobile-wallet-3014954-1.html

One example of the positive news NFC has been receiving, suddenly, is the following on how NFC can enable Quick Service Restaurants (QSRs) to speed their business and increase throughput.

http://www.mobilepaymentstoday.com/article/216383/NFC-technology-will-put-the-fast-back-in-fast-food-Commentary

This is the beginning of mobile payments.  Not the middle nor the end.  What will tomorrow bring?

J.W. Gant

**UPDATE**

ISIS is trying to create the sensation of beating drums leading the way to the future.  The news coming out is steady with major announcement following another and another.  Here is the latest:
http://www.paymentsnews.com/2013/08/american-express-serve-isis-announce-plan-to-link-mobile-wallet-platforms.html

This is an obvious attempt to turn around the public perception of ISIS, that has been almost all negative for the last 12 months, and create the appearance of momentum.